Capacity crowd at Loyal’s town hall fundraiser
Question and answer session in the town hall
Dedicated football fans, determined to help Rangers FC, set up a club in 2009 which has gone from strength to strength. Campbeltown Loyal Rangers Supporters Club’s annual charity fundraising evening, arranged by Billy Gilchrist, packed the town hall last Saturday. The sell-out, 150-ticket event left standing room only for a question and answer session with legends Barry Ferguson and Lee McCulloch. Earlier McCulloch had led the Blues to victory in the Jimmy Taylor Memorial Trophy in front of a near capacity crowd, on the town’s 3G pitch. At the start of the evening Loyal’s treasurer and kit sponsor Calum Semple said some thank yous to sponsors including: Archie Mathieson, Cathy at Café Bluebell, McFadyens Contractors, McFadyens Transport, Glenside Tractors, Andrew Smith Tyres, D McNair and Son, Campbeltown Motor Company, Jewsons and Kintyre Hire. In addition Mr Semple praised Zena Coffield and her team at Campbeltown Town Hall for all their help, especially in sorting out the licence for the venue at very short notice. He also thanked Loyal stalwarts Roger Sargent and Ronnie Souden, who sold 2,000 raffle tickets. The most poignant moment of the evening came when Mr Ferguson spoke about a fundraising stall run throughout the event. Signed Rangers footballs at £20 and a guess-the-number-of-crystals-on-a-bottleof-vodka competition, were being sold for a charity, set up by former Rangers player Fernando Ricksen who has Motor Neuron Disease. Mr Ferguson became very emotional as he spoke about the disease afflicting his friend and said: ‘Fernando was always hyperactive, he can hardly speak but up in his head he knows what is happening, he’s still fighting on but has just months to live.’